COOKING
Below are some simple every day opportunities to conserve energy in your kitchen:

• Plan your meals so several things can cook at the same time in the oven. Avoid opening the door until the food is done.
• A pressure cooker can cut the cooking time by one-third. Not recommended for beginners.
• When cleaning your oven, use the self cleaning cycle right after you finish using the over, while it's still hot.
• Microwave ovens use less energy to cook food, up to 70% less energy. They also cook food faster and do not heat up the kitchen like electric or gas ovens. Microwave ovens are great for reheating leftovers, cooking a single dish, and for defrosting food. Defrosted food uses one-third less energy than starting with frozen food.
• If you want to conserve energy, do not use aluminum foil on the bottom of the oven. The foil blocks heat and air circulation and may reduce oven temperature.
• Avoid opening the oven door to check on food. The oven temperature can drop by 30 degrees every time you open the oven door.
• Cook with the tops on your pots. Liquids will boil more quickly and it will allow you to cook at a lower temperature setting. The steam trapped in the pot aids in the cooking, further reducing cooking time.
• Ceramic and glass retain heat better than metals. This can allow you to lower the cooking temperature by a few degrees.
• Use the stove exhaust to help remove heat from the kitchen. Try shutting off the kitchen from the rest of the home while cooking to avoid adding heat load to the AC system.

AIR CONDITIONING
Did you ever wonder where the air that comes out of the vents is from? The air is taken from the rooms in your house and passed through a filter. You should keep air conditioner filters clean because the fan works harder with dirty filter. Wash Aluminum mesh filters and replace fiberglass filters. If you are going away for a few days, turn your air conditioner off or turn the thermostat up to 85 degrees. Close the curtains on the sunny side of the house during the day. Leave storm windows and doors in place during the air conditioning season. Set the thermostat to the highest temperature at which you can be comfortable. Think fans. Air movement can make it feel 10 degrees cooler on a hot day.

• Clean or replace air filters at least once a month. Dirty air filters make your heating and cooling system work harder than necessary.
• Keep the area around your condenser (outside unit) free from trash, high grass and don't build a fence around it that will block free air flow.
• If possible, locate condensers (outside air conditioning units) under shade trees or other shade. This will allow the unit to work more efficiently and use less energy.
• Keep the air conditioning coils clean (condenser and evaporator) with regular servicing. Clean coils will keep the system at top efficiency and keep your energy costs low. Regular servicing will also extend the system life and detect problems early.
• Set your thermostat at 78 in the summer and 68 in the winter. For each degree cooler in the summer or degree warmer in the winter, your energy use will increase by 6% or more. As an example, setting your thermostat at 72 degrees in the summer could increase your energy use by up to 36%.
• If you have central air conditioning, you should not close off vents in unused rooms. It could cause leaks in your ductwork. If you have window units, closing off unused rooms will reduce cooling costs and provide more cooling to the used areas.
• Newer, high efficiency air conditioning systems use much less energy, 30 to 40% less than older models for the same amount of running time. Installing a new, high efficiency system could pay for itself in energy savings in a very short time.
• Leakage in air conditioning ductwork in an average 10 to 15 year old home is 15% to 25% of its heating and cooling airflow.
• A fans blowing directly on you can make temperatures around you feel cooler by up to 10 degrees.

ATTIC & WALL INSULATION
Inadequate attic insulation can account for as much as 40% of your cooling cost. The problem is worse in the winter because heat rises. As much as 60% of the energy input to heat can be lost in the wintertime due to poor insulation.

• If your home is 10 to 15 years old, it probably has R-11 to R-15 insulation. To conserve energy, it is advised that you use R-30 insulation.
• If you are reproofing your home, you should consider using roof decking with a foil backing (radiant barrier). This can reduce annual energy bills by 5%. Using a lighter color on the shingles can also save 5% to 10% on cooling bills.

TREES
Shade trees can reduce the heat load on the house in summer and reduce cooling costs. In the winter, the low sun angle adds warmth to a house and is not blocked by foliage.

WINDOWS AND DOORS
Caulking around windows and weather stripping around doors is an excellent way to reduce heating and cooling costs. As much as 15% of your heating and cooling costs may be due to air leaking in or out of your home.
New, energy efficient windows have special coatings that block out 60% of the heat that is normally transmitted through the window while allowing light to pass through.
Adding storm windows and doors can reduce cooling or heating lost through single pane glass by 40%.

WATER HEATER
Did you ever wonder where hot water goes? For that matter, I bet you want to know what a BTU is. A BTU is a highly sophisticated engineering term that stands for British Thermal Unit (a measure of heat addition).
The important thing for you to remember is that:
BTUs = $Dollars.
More BTUs = More $Dollars.


• In real terms, about 25 cents of every electricity dollar that you spend goes to heating water.

• Water heating is the second largest user of energy in the average home (close behind heating and air conditioning). It represents 25% to 30% of a typical homes energy consumption. Setting your water heater down from 140 to 120 degrees can save as much as $65 per year. Insulating your water heater with a special made blanket can reduce its energy use by 10%.

AREA LIGHTING
Remember your parents nagging you about turning off the lights when you leave a room? It was a good idea then and it is a good idea now. Incandescent lights generate heat and lighting accounts for about 10% of a typical homes energy use.
Fluorescent lighting uses less energy than incandescent lighting, up to 60% less.
Fluorescent light also generates 75% less heat.

REFRIGERATORS

• A 10 year old refrigerator uses up to 50% more energy than a new energy efficient model. Refrigerators and freezers are the third largest home energy users.

• Side-by-side refrigerators often use 40% more energy than refrigerators with a separate freezer on top or bottom. Automatic defrost freezers (frost free) use 40% more energy than freezers that must be manually defrosted.

• Thick frost makes the freezer work harder. Defrost freezers when the frost reaches a quarter inch thickness.

• Low temperature settings cause the refrigerator or freezer to run more than needed. Refrigerator temperature should be set at 36 to 38 degrees and the freezer temperature should be set at 0 to 5 degrees. A 10 degree lower temperature setting on the refrigerator can increase energy use by 20%.

• Make sure your refrigerator and freezer door seals are in good condition. Test the seal with a sheet of paper by closing the door on the paper. If the paper falls out or pulls out easily, the door seal may need to be replaced.

FIREPLACES
Keep the flue damper closed when the fireplace is not in use. To make a believer of yourself and others, place a lighted candle near the fireplace and watch the flame. The flame follows the air currents (and your heating and cooling dollars) that are going up the chimney.

LAUNDRY
Before you turn off the computer and go do something productive like a load of laundry, think about these tips.

• Wash full loads of clothes in the coolest water that will get those difficult stains out. Rinse with cold water.

• Take advantage of the heat buildup in the dryer by drying several loads of clothes back to back.

• Keep the filters on the clothes dryer clean and lint free. The dryer will operate more efficiently and run less to get clothes dry.

• The automatic setting on the dryer is there for a reason. Most new dryers have a moisture sensor that shuts the dryer off when the clothes are dry. Try to dry full loads of clothes, but don’t overload the dryer. Just remember automatic setting are there for a reason. Try to dry several loads, one right after another. You already spent the money to heat your dryer up, so take advantage of it.

OTHER APPLIANCES
Many appliances use electricity even when turned off. A typical example is a television set with "instant on" features. Other appliances that use energy when not in use are: VCRs stereos and computers. Turn off appliances such as extra televisions, VCRs and computers when not in use. Even in the off state, each appliance can draw as much as 10 to 15 watts of electricity which is 7 to 10 kilowatt hours per month.